# Bora explained — Short Fiction > Chapter companion for Short Fiction by Aleksandr Kuprin. ## What happens The chapter describes the fierce bora wind that has been blowing for three days near Novorossiysk, its destructive power, and the contrasting responses of the local fishermen. While the experienced Balaklava Laestrygonians stay safe in coffeehouses, a group of inexperienced Russian Ivans drowns at sea. The narrative focuses on Vanya Andrutzaki's reckless voyage during the storm, his crew's struggle for survival, and the community's anxious vigil and joyous reunion upon their return. ## Themes in this chapter ### Nature and the Sublime The bora is depicted as a mysterious, capricious, and overwhelming force of nature that dwarfs human efforts and evokes awe and terror. ### Human Observation and Psychology The chapter contrasts the reckless bravado of Vanya with the cautious wisdom of the old fishermen, and explores the psychological strain of the crew during the storm. ### Cruelty and Suffering The indifferent fate of the Russian Ivans who drown, and the physical and mental suffering of Vanya's crew, highlight the harshness of life at sea. ## Character check-ins ### Vanya Andrutzaki The reckless young fisherman who defies the bora, sets sail, and survives three days at sea with his crew. ### Yura Paratino A crew member on Vanya's boat who suffers a hysteric fit during the storm and is knocked unconscious with an oar. ### Yani Lipiadi Mentioned as Yura Lipiadi, a crew member who experiences a hysteric fit and is restrained by Vanya. ## Key lines > Bora has been blowing for three days. Bora⁠—also called the northeaster⁠—is a mysterious, fierce wind, born somewhere in the bald, peeled-off mountains near Novorossiysk, which swoops down upon the round bay and sets the entire Black Sea rolling heavily. The bora, a fierce northeasterly wind, has been blowing for three days, originating in the barren mountains near Novorossiysk and violently churning the Black Sea. _Establishes the setting and the destructive power of the wind._ > The desperate Fyodor from Oleiz alone, who for many days had been burning candles before the image of St. Nicholas, the miracle-worker, decided to put to sea in order to gather in his sturgeon line. Only the desperate Fyodor from Oleiz, after days of praying to St. Nicholas, attempted to go to sea to retrieve his sturgeon line. _Highlights the extreme risk some fishermen take despite the storm._ > In the coffeehouse no one worried about them or pitied them. People smacked their lips over their liquor, laughed, and contented themselves with saying contemptuously: “The fools! In such weather! Oh, well, they’re only Russians.” In the coffeehouse, no one showed concern for the lost Ivans; instead, they mocked them as foolish Russians for venturing out in such weather. _Reveals the local fishermen's disdain for outsiders and their fatalistic attitude._ > Only three days later he returned home.⁠ ⁠… Three days and three nights without food or sleep, in a tiny cockleshell amidst a furious sea⁠—with no coast in sight, no sail, no beckoning lighthouse, no steamer’s smoke on the horizon! Vanya returned home after three days and nights without food or sleep, adrift in a small boat on a raging sea with no landmarks or signs of civilization. _Emphasizes the ordeal and isolation of Vanya's voyage._ > What a delightful, unforgetable moment it was, when, in the morning, at about eight o’clock, Yura Paratino, who stood on the summit of a cliff above the White Stones, screwed up his eyes, bent forward, bored the distance with his sharp gaze, and suddenly shouted: “They’re coming!” At eight in the morning, Yura Paratino, perched on a cliff, spotted the returning boat and shouted the joyful news that they were coming. _Captures the climax of the community's anxious wait and the relief of the sighting._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_se/chapters/vi-bora - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/short_fiction_se/chapters